North Muskegon · Downsizing
Downsizing in North Muskegon
The sale and the next place sequenced together, at a pace you set rather than one a calendar sets for you.
Selling Is the Easy Half Here
On a peninsula with a fixed amount of ground, a good property finds a buyer. That part usually goes well.
The harder half is what you move into, because the same scarcity that helps you sell works against you buying. Smaller properties here are not plentiful, and the ones that come up often go to somebody who was already waiting for exactly that.
So the sequence matters more here than almost anywhere I work. Selling first and then looking can leave you without a landing place in a market that may not produce one quickly. Buying first needs the money to be available before the sale completes.
Neither is automatically right. What is wrong is discovering the problem after the sale is already agreed, which is the version I see most often.
Where would you like to start?
What You Would Actually Be Shedding
It is worth being specific about what you want less of, because the answer changes which properties are worth looking at.
Some people want a smaller payment. Some want a smaller tax bill. Some want less building and lot to look after, which on this peninsula can mean a great deal of upkeep sitting on a property that is only partly used.
And where there is real equity in the current place, the next one can sometimes be bought with a much smaller loan or, depending on your situation, without one. That is worth establishing early rather than assumed either way, and it is a question for your lender rather than for me.
Once you have said which of those matters most, the search becomes specific rather than a slow process of elimination.
In their words
In their words
Going with Tamara as our realtor was a fantastic decision! She is honest, calm, professional, and a fantastic listener. I would most definitely recommend her to anyone!
What I Do, in Both Directions
Two transactions that have to meet in the middle is the whole job, so I work both ends at once rather than finishing one and starting the other.
On the sale: I read the property properly, which shore it is on, usable frontage against the recorded figure, what the house will need, and I price it against comparable water rather than whatever sold nearby.
On the purchase: I watch for what you have described before it is widely listed, because here the right smaller property is the scarce thing.
And a written report every week once the sale is live, so you always know where you stand rather than wondering.
More than $4 million in closed sales over my last twelve months, up from under a million the year before.
At Your Pace
There is no reason this has to happen quickly, and plenty of reasons it should happen in an order that suits you. Tell me the timeline you want and I will tell you honestly whether it is realistic here.
More about the town is on the North Muskegon area page, the full approach is at downsizing, and the number comes first at what your home is worth.
Frequently Asked Questions
Should I sell first or buy first?
Here that question has more weight than usual, because smaller properties on this peninsula are not plentiful and the good ones often go to somebody already waiting. Selling first can leave you without a landing place; buying first needs funds available before the sale completes. The answer is specific to your situation and worth settling before anything is listed.
Could the equity in my house pay for the next one?
Sometimes, depending entirely on your numbers, and it is worth finding out rather than assuming either way. A much smaller loan is a common outcome and buying without one happens. What your particular position supports is a question for your lender and your tax adviser; what I can tell you is what the current place is realistically worth.
Is there a best time of year to do this?
The sale and the purchase pull in different directions, which is the real complication rather than the month. More activity means a better market to sell into and more competition for what you want to buy. I would rather plan that around your timeline than hand you a rule.
North Muskegon
What downsizing looks like in North Muskegon
A peninsula with water on both sides: Bear Lake to the north, Muskegon Lake and the route to Lake Michigan to the south.
The two shores are not the same purchase. Muskegon Lake to the south is the larger, more open water and it connects through to Lake Michigan, so a boat there has a route out to the big lake. Bear Lake to the north is smaller and quieter in the evening.
A peninsula is also finite. There is a fixed amount of it and no way to make more, which is why being ready before you need to be matters more here than it does further inland.
The method
How I do it in North Muskegon
Downsizing: keep exploring
Ready to make your move with Tamara Hekkema?